Called CERBERUS, four separately developed EW payloads were used in 12 operationally relevant missions. The interchangeable payloads, each customized for a specific mission and threat, were swapped onto the captive carry vehicle in less than one minute. The payloads were designed to be used on a MALD® vehicle.

"The CERBERUS design is cost-effective and expands MALD capabilities to address new missions and target sets. It's a sensible approach for mitigating payload obsolescence," said Dr. Jeff Heyer, head of Electronic Warfare Strategic Planning Organization at Naval Research Laboratory. "The design embodies the CNO's 'Payloads over Platforms' vision."

This four-year program, in collaboration with U.S. Pacific Command and Naval Air Systems Command (PMA-234), developed a payload system architecture integrated with a quick interchange structural connection. Together, they provide a match for the rapidly evolving electronic attack battle space.

The critical technology for the quick-attachment technique was borrowed from IndyCar racing technology. CERBERUS adapted the half-turn quick lock developed by Dallara, which has 40 years of expertise in producing some of the safest and fastest racing cars in the world. This design was altered to meet aerospace form factors and environmental requirements.

"The successful Military Utility Assessment during Northern Edge 15 demonstrated the CERBERUS design's capacity to expand MALD capabilities to address new missions and target sets," Heyer said. "There is a high-demand signal from the operational forces to deliver this capability to the warfighter now."

During Northern Edge, new tactics, techniques and capabilities are demonstrated for possible use in combat. A MALD vehicle was carried below a Sabreliner, with the payload controlled from within the aircraft cabin. This is an effective tool for evaluating payload performance, and allows for real-time control and data analysis during a flight test.

MALD-J is in full rate production for the U.S. Air Force. The U.S. Navy is evaluating development of MALD-N in the near future to conduct stand-in-jamming for their unique missions.

About MALD and MALD-J
MALD is a state-of-the-art, low-cost flight vehicle that is modular, air-launched and programmable. It weighs less than 300 pounds and has a range of approximately 500 nautical miles. MALD protects aircraft and their crews by duplicating the combat flight profiles and signatures of U.S. and allied aircraft. MALD-J adds radar-jamming capability to the basic MALD platform.

MALD confuses enemy air defenses by duplicating friendly aircraft flight profiles and radar signatures.
MALD-J maintains all capabilities of MALD and adds jamming capabilities.
Raytheon began delivery of MALD-Js in the fall of 2012.

Called CERBERUS, four separately developed EW payloads were used in 12 operationally relevant missions. The interchangeable payloads, each customized for a specific mission and threat, were swapped onto the captive carry vehicle in less than one minute. The payloads were designed to be used on a MALD® vehicle.

"The CERBERUS design is cost-effective and expands MALD capabilities to address new missions and target sets. It's a sensible approach for mitigating payload obsolescence," said Dr. Jeff Heyer, head of Electronic Warfare Strategic Planning Organization at Naval Research Laboratory. "The design embodies the CNO's 'Payloads over Platforms' vision."

This four-year program, in collaboration with U.S. Pacific Command and Naval Air Systems Command (PMA-234), developed a payload system architecture integrated with a quick interchange structural connection. Together, they provide a match for the rapidly evolving electronic attack battle space.

The critical technology for the quick-attachment technique was borrowed from IndyCar racing technology. CERBERUS adapted the half-turn quick lock developed by Dallara, which has 40 years of expertise in producing some of the safest and fastest racing cars in the world. This design was altered to meet aerospace form factors and environmental requirements.

"The successful Military Utility Assessment during Northern Edge 15 demonstrated the CERBERUS design's capacity to expand MALD capabilities to address new missions and target sets," Heyer said. "There is a high-demand signal from the operational forces to deliver this capability to the warfighter now."

During Northern Edge, new tactics, techniques and capabilities are demonstrated for possible use in combat. A MALD vehicle was carried below a Sabreliner, with the payload controlled from within the aircraft cabin. This is an effective tool for evaluating payload performance, and allows for real-time control and data analysis during a flight test.

MALD-J is in full rate production for the U.S. Air Force. The U.S. Navy is evaluating development of MALD-N in the near future to conduct stand-in-jamming for their unique missions.

About MALD and MALD-J
MALD is a state-of-the-art, low-cost flight vehicle that is modular, air-launched and programmable. It weighs less than 300 pounds and has a range of approximately 500 nautical miles. MALD protects aircraft and their crews by duplicating the combat flight profiles and signatures of U.S. and allied aircraft. MALD-J adds radar-jamming capability to the basic MALD platform.

MALD confuses enemy air defenses by duplicating friendly aircraft flight profiles and radar signatures.
MALD-J maintains all capabilities of MALD and adds jamming capabilities.
Raytheon began delivery of MALD-Js in the fall of 2012.

I really should change my personal text

There are 160 Growlers currently part of the program of record. That along with the USAF's Compass Call replacement likely does not meet all of the COCOM need for Stand Off AEA but does enough for them to focus on other unmet needs for now. We will know more once the Joint AEA is complete which I think is scheduled to be shortly. MALD family supports the Stand In mission but other recoverable systems can potentially be made much more sophisticated to support the same mission by configuring them to carry much more sophisticated, and expensive ISR and EW/EA payloads that you would not want to put inside an expendable system for a variety of reasons.

DARPA's Gremlins is not a weapon system..it is a demonstration of a system and the launch and recovery mechanism. Once it transitions to the services, they have to decide whether they want to incorporate that and when and if so in which form. Think of that technology proof of concept leading to a potential MALD 2.0 in the future. It aims to solve one problem of expendable decoys and SI jammers - that of the cost constraints put on them on account of them being single use systems. If you can get 5 missions out of each future MALD, you can potentially add more capability while accepting the higher cost. Similarly, you could add more sensitive payloads which you won't necessarily want as part of systems that are expendable.

CLEARANCE: Secret

The US Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) is to launch production of the Raytheon Miniature Air Launched Decoy - Navy (MALD-N), with a notification for an impending sole-source award posted on 10 March.

The notification on the beta.sam.gov website states that NAVAIR is to issue a cost plus incentive-fee contract to Raytheon Missile Systems (RMS) for the commencement of low-rate initial production (LRIP) for the naval derivative of the US Air Force's (USAF's) ADM-160C MALD-Jammer (MALD-J) system.

No potential contract value, timeline, or MALD-N numbers were disclosed, although Jane's has previously reported that the first LRIP contracts for 250 MALD-N systems is expected to be placed in fiscal year (FY) 2021 and 2022.

In its baseline form, the MALD system is designed to mimic the radar and flight signature of a manned fighter or bomber, thereby confusing enemy air-defence systems. The MALD-J provides for an additional electronic warfare capability to actively jam enemy air defences, and is the basis for the US Navy's (USN's) MALD-N derivative.

As previously related to Jane's by RMS officials, the MALD-J has an operational range of about 900 km after launch, with its flight characteristics able to be pre-programmed to better represent a particular manned type. Its single Hamilton Sundstrand TJ-150 turbojet engine powers it to a surge speed of Mach 0.9 or an endurance speed of about Mach 0.6.

The MALD can be launched from any aircraft that can carry the Raytheon AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM), which would enable the MALD-N to be carried by the USN's Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and Lockheed Martin F-35C Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) platforms.